Education

Education in Singapore is managed by the Ministry of Education (MOE), which controls the development and administration of state schools receiving government funding, but also has an advisory and supervisory role in respect of private schools. For both private and state schools, there are variations in the extent of autonomy in their curriculum, scope of government aid and funding,tuition burden on the students, and admission policy

The main language of instruction in Singapore is English, which was officially designated the first language within the local education system in 1987. English is the first language learned by half the children by the time they reach preschool age and becomes the primary medium of instruction by the time they reach primary school. Although Malay, Mandarin and Tamil are also official languages, English is the language of instruction for nearly all subjects except the official Mother Tongue languages and the literatures of those languages; these are generally not taught in English, although there is provision for the use of English at the initial stages. Certain schools, such as secondary schools under the Special Assistance Plan (SAP), encourage a richer use of the mother tongue and may occasionally teach subjects in Mandarin Chinese. A few schools have been experimenting with curricula that integrates language subjects with mathematics and the sciences, using both English and a second language.

The school year is divided into two semesters. The first begins in the beginning of January and ends in May; the second begins in July and ends in November.

Level/Grade	Typical age
Preschool
pre-school playgroup	3-4
kindergarden	4-6
Primary school (Children enter P1 in the year they turn 7)
Primary 1	6-7
Primary 2	7-8
Primary 3	8-9
Primary 4	9-10
Primary 5	10-11
Primary 6	12-13 (13 if failed PSLE)
Secondary school
Secondary 1	12-13
Secondary 2	13-14
Secondary 3	14-15
Secondary 4	15-16
Secondary 5	16-17
Post secondary education
Tertiary education (College or University)	Ages vary

 

Information : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_in_Singapore